Page 84 - SAICE book proof 2 LATEST JULY 2014

s a i c e
MPUMALANGA PROVINCE

The operation yields 2.6 million tons of phosphate rock ◊ Below: Phalaborwa mines
concentrate annually from processing 35 million tons ◊ Below Centre: Secunda
of ore per annum. Once crushed, milled, concentrated
and dried, most of the phosphate rock concentrate is
railed to Foskor’s processing plant in Richards Bay, 800
km away.

Approximately two million years ago, violent volcanic
eruptions took place over a period of millions of years.
These eruptions gave rise to a rich area of minerals,
known as the Phalabora Igneous Complex. The ore
body contains a unique collection of minerals, namely
phosphates, uranium, nickel, magnetite, silver, gold,
palladium, platinum, zirconium and copper. Prior to this
discovery, it is evident through various artifacts found,
that smelting of copper ore and the production of a re-
markably pure copper was produced in the Phalaborwa
th
area, in the early 8 century.

23°56’32.80” S, 31°08’27.32” E

11. Secunda and pipelines from the Vaal are
synonymous in one way or another – at Secunda a ma-
jor portion of the liquid fuel from coal is produced by 12. Gold in this province was in the form of small
Sasol which is the biggest of its kind in the world and alluvial deposits but nevertheless caused huge gold
for this process water is essential. The coal mines and rush fever and at Barberton and Pilgrims Rest the relics
the industries of this region rely heavily on water from of these days are still attracting many tourists. A cable-
the many dams around this area and a mammoth steel way at Barberton carries timber from the high planta-
water pipeline of more than 2 m in diameter help to tions near the Swaziland border to the Lowveld. For the
feed the industrial complexes. geologically minded it is worth mentioning that some of
the world’s oldest semi-precious stone verdite is found
near this town and much ends up in trinkets for the
26°30’58.00” S, 29°12’10.00” E tourist trade.

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